CLK gets reading, early literacy grants

Graham Jaehnig

Staff Writer

gjaehnig@mininggazette.com

Graham Jaehnig/Daily Mining Gazette
CKL Schools superintendent Christopher Davidson discusses $23,000 in grants the elementary school received for assisting students K-3 who are not proficient in reading.

CALUMET TOWNSHIP — The Calumet-Laurium-Keweenaw Schools recently received $17,374 in funding for an Additional Instructional Time and Interventions grant to help students improve reading.

Some students have been identified as being below grade level in reading using Michigan Department of Education screening and diagnostic tools. The students have been determined to need additional instruction, along with supports and interventions to increase their reading skills.

“What it’s primarily used for is the staffing and interventions for students behind grade level in reading,” said superintendent Christopher Davidson. “It allows us to focus on students in grades K-3 who aren’t reading at grade level.”

The goal is to get students those students proficient at reading by the end of third grade, Davidson said. The grant funding makes that possible. Elementary school principal Holly Rivest was the one responsible for obtaining the grant.

Third grade is regarded as a pivotal age for reading. If students cannot read proficiently by the end of third grade, they could face severe challenges to future school successes.

In fourth grade, students are introduced to a wider variety of texts. By then, readers should have learned to extract and analyze new information while expanding their vocabulary simultaneously through reading.

Additionally, the CLK Elementary School has been awarded $6,227 through an Acceptable Assessment Tools for Early Literacy Educators grant. The grant is based on a per-pupil formula reimbursement to districts and public schools to purchase a computer-adaptive test or one or more diagnostic tools or screening tools for pupils in grades K-3, which are intended to increase reading proficiency by fourth grade. The grant was obtained through the effort of Assistant Principal Matthew Hampton, Davidson said.